CRITICAL Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4209 To enhance the national interest and security of the United States and its European allies and partners by countering malign Russian influence, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AUGUST 27, 2019 Mr. ENGEL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To enhance the national interest and security of the United States and its European allies and partners by coun- tering malign Russian influence, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Countering Russian 4 Influence Through Interagency Coordination And Leader- 5 ship Act’’ or the ‘‘CRITICAL Act’’. 6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:08 Sep 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 4209 IH (1) Foreign adversaries of the United States 1 are currently using malign influence to disrupt, 2 alter, and undermine United States foreign and do- 3 mestic policy and democratic processes at low cost 4 and low risk to themselves. 5 (2) In exporting malign influence, foreign ad- 6 versaries use ambiguity to their advantage, employ- 7 ing proxies, hackers, private sector companies, 8 ‘‘independent’’ research agencies, and other actors 9 with varying degrees of separation from their gov- 10 ernments in an effort to obscure foreign government 11 involvement and maintain deniability. 12 (3) Since the Cold War, the Soviet Union and 13 now the Russian Federation (in this Act referred to 14 as ‘‘Russia’’) has attempted to use these types of 15 tools of statecraft to influence the foreign and do- 16 mestic policies and actions of the United States gov- 17 ernment, as well as the beliefs and political decisions 18 of America and its citizens. 19 (4) The United States intelligence community 20 has credibly concluded that Russia interfered in the 21 2016 election for President of the United States, 22 and European allies and partners have credibly con- 23 cluded that Russia attempted to influence several 24 key European votes in 2016 and 2017, including the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 4209 IH Brexit referendum in the United Kingdom and elec- 1 tions in the Netherlands, France, and Germany. 2 (5) Russia has attempted to deter or derail as- 3 piring NATO members from achieving accession, as 4 evidenced by their aggression against Ukraine and 5 Georgia and the attempted violent coup in Monte- 6 negro in 2016 with the assistance of local Serbian 7 nationalists. 8 (6) Russia has leveraged its gas monopoly over 9 Europe to influence politics and political decisions of 10 our NATO allies and European Union partners, as 11 it has done repeatedly in Ukraine and across East- 12 ern Europe. 13 (7) Russia has attempted to finance fringe po- 14 litical movements in countries throughout Europe, 15 using a network of oligarchs and organized criminal 16 enterprises in an effort to obscure Kremlin involve- 17 ment. 18 (8) Russia operates Russia Today (RT), Sput- 19 nik, and other state-sponsored media outlets in doz- 20 ens of languages across Europe and the United 21 States to spread disinformation and undermine gov- 22 ernment and electoral systems. It also assaults 23 American institutions and those of our European al- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 4209 IH lies using cyber proxies, troll farms, and other tools 1 in the information space. 2 (9) The United States national security appa- 3 ratus has credibly concluded that Russia continues 4 to utilize malign influence to undermine our democ- 5 racies and will continue to do so for the foreseeable 6 future. 7 (10) Parts of the United States Government 8 interagency response, such as the Global Engage- 9 ment Center (GEC), were empowered to address 10 specific elements of Russian malign influence, par- 11 ticularly disinformation. 12 (11) The mission of the GEC is ‘‘to direct, lead, 13 synchronize, integrate, and coordinate efforts of the 14 Federal Government to recognize, understand, ex- 15 pose, and counter foreign state and foreign non-state 16 propaganda and disinformation efforts aimed at un- 17 dermining or influencing the policies, security, or 18 stability of the United States and its allies and part- 19 ner nations’’. 20 (12) The GEC plays an important role in coun- 21 tering the disinformation tactics used by foreign ad- 22 versaries and coordinating these responses across 23 the United States Government. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 4209 IH (13) Russia’s use of a broad range of tools of 1 malign influence, including disinformation, neces- 2 sitates a robust, dynamic, and coordinated United 3 States Government interagency response. 4 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 5 It is the sense of Congress that United States Gov- 6 ernment efforts to counter Russian malign influence 7 should be led by the Department of State in close coordi- 8 nation with the Department of Defense, the intelligence 9 community, and other relevant Federal departments and 10 agencies and relevant private sector and civil society enti- 11 ties. 12 SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 13 It shall be the policy of the United States to— 14 (1) continually seek to strengthen the United 15 States defenses, and the defenses of its European al- 16 lies and partners, against malign Russian influence 17 by closing off vulnerabilities that Russia can exploit, 18 including by strengthening civil society, media lit- 19 eracy, and cyber defenses; 20 (2) clearly state the costs that should be im- 21 posed on Russia for its attempts to utilize tools of 22 malign influence against the United States and its 23 European allies and partners; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 4209 IH (3) proactively mitigate Russian attempts to in- 1 fluence or interfere with the United States and its 2 European allies and partners through deterrence, de- 3 nial, and resilience measures such that the damage 4 inflicted upon the United States and its allies and 5 partners when attacks do occur is reduced; and 6 (4) promote stronger ties with democratic coun- 7 tries around the world, understanding that the best 8 defense against malign Russian influence is a strong 9 democracy and respect for individual liberty and the 10 rule of law. 11 SEC. 5. RUSSIA INFLUENCE GROUP. 12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a Russia 13 Influence Group (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘RIG’’). 14 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The RIG shall— 15 (1) hold not fewer than two senior-level meet- 16 ings annually, at which all members are present, to 17 coordinate and provide guidance on the interagency 18 efforts to counter malign Russian influence in Eu- 19 rope and the United States; 20 (2) hold not fewer than four working-level meet- 21 ings annually, at which the RIG shall— 22 (A) conduct interim assessments and for- 23 mulate proposed improvements to the RIG’s ef- 24 forts to counter malign Russian influence in 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 4209 IH Europe and the United States, which shall be 1 presented at the senior-level meetings; 2 (B) review monitoring and evaluation as- 3 sessments by the individual agencies, depart- 4 ments, and third-party evaluators for programs 5 and efforts designed to counter malign Russian 6 influence, with particular emphasis on programs 7 designed to counter such influence in Europe 8 and the United States; and 9 (C) develop methods and plans for apply- 10 ing the results of such assessments to modify 11 activities on an iterative basis across relevant 12 Federal departments and agencies; 13 (3) hold additional subgroup meetings on a reg- 14 ular basis with relevant Federal departments or 15 agencies to address different tools of malign Russian 16 influence individually, including election interference, 17 disinformation, illicit finance, political influence and 18 corruption, energy influence, and economic influence; 19 (4) collaborate with United States embassies in 20 each relevant country, and work with domestic and 21 international actors, as appropriate, such as partner 22 governments, intergovernmental organizations, non- 23 governmental organizations, academic institutions, 24 private sector entities, and research institutions, to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 4209 IH counter malign Russian influence in a more effective 1 and collective manner; and 2 (5) provide recommendations and best practices 3 that could be applied to countering malign Russian 4 influence in other regions. 5 (c) CHAIR AND MEMBERSHIP.—The RIG— 6 (1) shall be chaired by the Assistant Secretary 7 of State for European and Eurasian Affairs; 8 (2) shall include representatives of— 9 (A) the Department of State, including the 10 Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, the 11 Global Engagement Center (GEC), and the Bu- 12 reau of Energy Resources; 13 (B) the Department of Defense, including 14 United States European Command; 15 (C) the Department of Homeland Security; 16 (D) the Department of Energy; 17 (E) the Department of Justice; 18 (F) the Department of the Treasury; 19 (G) the United States Agency for Inter- 20 national Development; 21 (H) the staff of the National Security 22 Council; and 23 (I) the Office of the Director of National 24 Intelligence; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 4209 IH (3) may include representatives from such other 1 entities as the Chair determines appropriate. 2 (d) RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE CHAIR.—The Chair 3 of the RIG shall— 4 (1) coordinate and promote interagency and 5 multilateral efforts to protect the United States, its 6 citizens, and its European allies and partners from 7 malign Russian influence; 8 (2) establish mechanisms and seek to resolve 9 interagency differences in responding to malign Rus- 10 sian influence; 11 (3) convene not fewer than two annual senior- 12 level meetings as described in subsection (b)(1); 13 (4) engage chiefs of mission at relevant United 14 States embassies and senior officials of partner gov- 15 ernments, intergovernmental organizations, and non- 16 governmental organizations to ensure high-level sup- 17 port for efforts to counter malign Russian influence; 18 (5) lead the development and biennial updates 19 of the interagency strategy required by section 6; 20 and 21 (6) submit to the appropriate congressional 22 committees the annual report required by section 7. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 4209 IH SEC. 6. STRATEGY TO COUNTER MALIGN RUSSIAN INFLU- 1 ENCE. 2 Not later than nine months after the date of the en- 3 actment of this Act and every two years thereafter, the 4 Chair of the RIG, in consultation with all members of the 5 RIG, shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 6 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 7 Foreign Relations of the Senate an interagency strategy 8 for countering malign Russian influence, including the fol- 9 lowing: 10 (1) Objectives for the RIG over one year, five 11 year, and ten year time periods. 12 (2) Roles and responsibilities for each Federal 13 department, agency, or entity with membership on 14 the RIG. 15 (3) Methods of malign influence used by Rus- 16 sia, including the following: 17 (A) The use of a variety of tools to inter- 18 fere in democratic processes in the United 19 States and Europe, including using illicit fi- 20 nancing, dark money, and corruption of polit- 21 ical candidates and parties. 22 (B) The use of disinformation and misin- 23 formation to create instability. 24 (C) The use of energy as a tool of coercion 25 and political leverage. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 4209 IH (D) The use of cyber tools to hack, leak, 1 disable, threaten, or otherwise coerce in order 2 to achieve its political or security objectives. 3 (E) The manipulation of cultural, religious, 4 and other identities to leverage European coun- 5 tries toward its sphere of influence. 6 (F) The use of proxy forces or misidenti- 7 fied Russian forces for the sake of deniability in 8 kinetic aggression against its neighbors. 9 (4) A prioritized list of gaps or areas in which 10 the coordination and activities of such Federal de- 11 partments, agencies, and entities should be en- 12 hanced. 13 (5) An updated and prioritized list of European 14 ‘‘Watch Countries’’ with respect to which malign 15 Russian influence is likely to pose a significant 16 threat to the interests or security of the United 17 States or Europe and on which to focus RIG efforts. 18 (6) A description of the costs and risks of the 19 current United States approach to countering ma- 20 lign Russian influence. 21 (7) The resources necessary to achieve the goals 22 established in the strategy. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:31 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4209.IH H4209 jspears on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 4209 IH SEC. 7. REPORT ON ACTIVITIES TO COUNTER MALIGN RUS- 1 SIAN INFLUENCE. 2 The Chair of the RIG, acting through the RIG and 3 in consultation with the heads of the Federal agencies and 4 departments with membership on the RIG, shall annually 5 submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 6 of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Rela- 7 tions of the Senate a report that includes the following: 8 (1) Descriptions of what activities the RIG and 9 each entity participating in the RIG undertook to 10 counter malign Russian influence in Europe and the 11 United States. 12 (2) An identification of the activities, programs, 13 or actions that are planned for the u [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]